faces, built with different pieces of marble; the top of it has fallen, and the rest cannot long continue. This obelisk was covered over with brazen plates, as is apparent from the holes made to receive the pegs that fastened them to the marble. The plates were certainly set off with bas-reliefs and other ornaments, for the inscription at the bottom speaks of it as a work altogether marvellous. Between the two columns is another brazen column, formed of three serpents, turned spirally like a roll of tobacco; its size diminishes gradually from the base as far as the necks of the serpents, and their heads, spreading on the sides like a tripod, compose a kind of capital. The heads have all been destroyed, and nothing remains of the brazen column but the lower parts. It is said to be of the very earliest date, supposed to have been brought from Delphi, where it served to bear up that famous golden tripod which the Greeks after the battle of Plater found in the camp of Mardonius.

From this interesting spot we went to the mosque of Suleiman the Magnificent, one of the most glorious monuments of Ottoman architecture, built under the greatest of the Ottoman Sultans, in a style of grandeur worthy of the splendor of his reign, by Sinam, in 1550, finished in 1555. The plan of this mosque is according to its divisions exactly the same as that of all the fourteen great mosques, and apparently built entirely after the pattern of St. Sophia, but with the view to surpass it. As regards the regularity of the plan, the perfection of the individual parts, and the harmony of the whole, I give preference to this mosque.

Tired of taking off our shoes, and hearing the Koran read to the people, we concluded we had seen enough of mosques, and went to the tomb of Sultan Mahmoud and his family, which is built of the purest marble, and fitted up in the most extravagant manner. The tombs in the interior are covered with black, inlaid with mother-ofpearl, on the top of which are a number of cashmere shawls of great value. Diamond and pearl work are to be seen in great profusion, and the stands containing the Koran are really elegant.

At the tomb we procured horses and rode to the Seven Towers, called Jedi Kouli, an isolated building at the west angle of the city, where the walls which cross the promontory connect the sea of Marmora. Few things in this city interested me more than my walk around the imperial castle, once a state prison, and the same

which procured for Constantinople the proud name of the "welldefended city." Time has laid his ruining hand upon it, and the whole fabric is in a state of dilapidation. Three of the towers have nearly disappeared, and those remaining are two hundred feet high. Passing the Cannon Gate, through which Mohammed II. made his triumphant entrée into the Christian city, we were conducted to the cemetery in which the seventy thousand Janissaries were buried. The fatal mark of death by the bowstring is conspicuous on the tombs, as a warning to rebels that they cannot elude the vengeance of the Porte.

The following day we procured a caïque and rowed up to the Sweet Waters, situated at the extreme point of the Golden Horn. The place derives its name from a number of springs, whose waters are supposed to be sweeter probably than other springs. In fair weather this is one of the most beautiful excursions in the world. The Sultan and his harem resort here every Friday, and a great concourse of Turkish ladies and gentlemen to meet them. This was the only opportunity that we had of seeing the Sultan's pets, and the black eunuchs who attended them were so cautious that we only caught an occasional glimpse-enough however to convince us that we could select a much better harem in the United States, if our laws were not so binding on the subject.

No one leaves Constantinople without making an excursion on the Bosphorus to the dark and stormy Euxine. English and Turkish steamers run in competition, and those living at the various villages along the European and Asiatic shores, have every accommodation, and transact their business in the city with as much facility as those living here. To describe the beauties of the Bosphorus to a distant reader would be beyond the power of the most gifted. Nothing can exceed the beauty of the scenery along its banks.

"The European with the Asian shore

Sprinkled with palaces; the ocean stream,
Here and there studded with a seventy-four,
Sophia's cupola with golden gleam;
The cypress groves; Olympus high and hoar;
The twelve isles, and more than I could dream,
Far less describe, present the very view
Which charm'd the charming Mary Montagu."

Either side is lined with the magnificent palaces of the various Sultans, numerous villages, and country seats of the foreign ambassadors. We remained one night at Buyukdere to enjoy the scenery by moon-light, and partake of an excellent fish supper prepared by our esteemed Consul, Mr. Brown. The next morning we visited our accomplished Minister, Mr. Marsh, who lives at the beautiful village of Terepiee. He is a ripe scholar, well acquainted with the Turkish language and history, and every way fitted to represent the interests of his country.

This is my last communication from the capital of the Orient. I never expect to see it again as I now see it. In a short time the power of the Sultan must give way, the character of his people change, and the glory of the Ottoman empire be submerged by the Rushing people.

LETTER FIFTY-FOUR.

ATHENS.

Departure from Constantinople-Island of Syra-The Peiræus-Modern Athens-Ancient Ruins and Localities-Excursions-King Otho and the Queen-The Greek ParliamentVisit to the Daughters of Marco Bozzaris-Maid of Athens-Mr. Hill and his SchoolElizabeth of Crete-The Count's Daughter

HAVING remained sufficiently long in Constantinople to examine and enjoy all its wonders and peculiarities, we embarked on the same steamer that brought us, for the island of Syra, touching again at Smyrna and Scio. In addition to the party of Americans who accompanied us from Syria, we had Mr. Robert J. Morris and lady, of Philadelphia, and the widow Atkinson, of Dresden. Mr. Morris was our late Chargé d'Affaires at Naples, and acquired quite as much reputation for diplomacy as his wife for beauty and accomplishment. The widow is a woman of extraordinary intelligence, and speaks fluently several languages. She travelled alone, and was then en route to the Holy Land and Egypt. I gave her some notes on the East, which I hope proved of service to her in her lonely wanderings.

On the morning of the third day we cast anchor in the harbor of Syra, which is one of the most important points in Greece. The

Austrian Lloyd steamers stop there, and passengers from the East are required to perform quarantine on the boat for twenty-four hours, which is far preferable to being cooped up in a filthy lazaretto. With books to read, pleasant company and fine scenery, we passed our time delightfully. Syra (anciently called Syros) is a flourishing commercial town, and contains a population of fourteen thousand. Its prosperity began with the revolution, when refugees from all other parts found protection there, and built temporary hovels on the sea-shore. It next acquired importance as the stopping place of the Austrian and French steamers. Soon after our quarantine expired, we moved our luggage on a small steamer that runs to the Piræus, and went on shore to get breakfast at one of the hotels. Here we met C. L. M. Evangelides, our Consul. He is a Greek who received his education at Columbia College, New-York, and is now the head of a large and flourishing school. He is an energetic man, and seems to have the cause of Greece dearer to his heart than any of his fellow-countrymen that I have yet seen. We visited his school, were presented to his family, and received with the greatest hospitality. Among the pupils we saw a nephew of the celebrated Marco Bozzaris, who figured so conspicuously in the late war. The little boy is about fourteen years of age, and evidently possesses a great deal of character. He had just made his appearance in the school after an absence of three days on the island, having fled because his teacher punished him for some misconduct. He gave me his signature in the English and Greek languages, and wished me a safe return to my native land. Mr. Evangelides accompanied us through the town, and also to the old fountain at which the nymphs of the island assembled in the earliest ages. It exists in its original state, and is, as formerly, the rendezvous of love and gallantry, of gossip and tale-telling. It is near the town, and the most limpid water gushes from the rock. The inhabitants preserve a tradition, that the pilgrims of old, on their way to Delos, resorted hither for purification, and it is still regarded by them with a degree. of religious veneration. The islands of Andros, Tinos, Delos, and Paros, are all situated in sight of Syra. The latter is celebrated for the extent and beauty of its marble quarries. The monument just completed in the Hôtel des Invalides in Paris over the remains of the immortal Napoleon, was carried from the island of Paros, and a

block is now being prepared for the monument at Washington. While in the harbor we visited a war frigate belonging to Greece, and commanded by an old veteran of the Revolution. When he ascertained that we were Americans, his heart seemed to open towards us; the vessel was exhibited in all its parts, and the birthday of the old man was honored with a heart-felt toast in good Samian wine.

We arrived at Piræus in the night, and the following morning we drove over an excellent turnpike road on the Plain of Attica tó the Hotel d'Orient in Athens. It is unnecessary for me to describe the feeling that agitated my bosom when I entered the gateway of this renowned city. They were the same that I experienced when I stood upon the summit of the Capitol at ancient Rome, and when I knelt at the tomb of our Saviour in Jerusalem. I am in Athens ! "Athence! Athence!". Oh! what a flood of memories rush upon the mind at the bare mention of her name!

"Son of the morning, rise, approach you here!

Come-but molest not yon defenceless urn;
Look on this spot-a nation's sepulchre,

Abode of gods, whose shrines no longer burn."

Modern Athens is a beautiful and flourishing little city, containing a population of about thirty thousand, and retaining, in many respects, the character of its ancient predecessor. The manners and customs of the Greeks have not undergone so great a change as in other countries. Their dress and mode of living, as far as they are able, correspond pretty much with those of their ancestors. We did not come here, however, to see modern improvements, but to gaze with our own eyes upon the remains of objects that have attracted the admiration of the world for ages.

Having procured comfortable quarters, we proceeded, with a Greek for our guide, down the main street of the modern city in the direction of the Acropolis, the great centre of ancient Athens. The first antique that attracted our attention was a small circular building of marble called the Tower of the Winds, or the water clock of Andronicus Cyrrhestes. It was erected to indicate the quarter from whence the wind blew, the hour of the day by the sun when the weather was clear, and by water when it was cloudy. The